Every experience is an opportunity to practice awareness.

Appearances are mind, mind itself is emptiness, emptiness itself is spontaneous presence.

True peace is found not in the absence of experience but in the clear seeing of all experience.

Not knowing how near the truth is, we seek it far away.

Only one book is worth reading: the heart.

Insight knowledge comes from direct experience, not from intellectual understanding.

Mindfulness is being aware of what's going on, not trying to control what's going on.

By understanding emptiness, one understands all phenomena. Without understanding emptiness, one understands nothing.

Live in joy, in love, even among those who hate. Live in joy, in health, even among the afflicted. Live in joy, in peace, even among the troubled. Look within, be still.

Through violence, you may solve one problem, but you sow the seeds for another.

Zen teaches nothing; it merely enables us to wake up and become aware. It does not teach, it points.

Like a fine flower, beautiful to look at but without scent, fine words are fruitless in a man who does not act in accordance with them.

The entire path is a path of self-responsibility. Nobody else can walk it for you.

To live – is that not enough? To love – is that not everything?

Nothing can harm you as much as your own unguarded thoughts.

The great gift of meditation is that it returns us to the simplicity of our own being.

Each of you is perfect the way you are... and you can use a little improvement.

When you realize the emptiness of all phenomena, compassion will arise in your heart for all sentient beings who do not understand this truth.

People have a hard time letting go of their suffering. Out of a fear of the unknown, they prefer suffering that is familiar.

The mind is the root from which all things grow. If you can understand the mind, everything else is included.

The color of the mountains is Buddha's body; the sound of running water is his great speech.

A good friend who points out mistakes and imperfections and rebukes evil is to be respected as if he reveals a secret of hidden treasure.

Life is like a cup of tea. It's all in how you make it.

Impermanence, suffering, and non-self are not philosophical concepts but realities to be directly perceived through mindfulness practice.

Not by hatred is hatred conquered, but by love alone. This is an eternal law.

True freedom is a freedom from the tyranny of our own thoughts and afflictive emotions.

Just observe whatever arises. Don't try to create anything, and don't reject anything.

Personal experience is everything in Zen. No ideas are intelligible to those who have no backing of experience.

Letting go gives us freedom, and freedom is the only condition for happiness.

The goal of meditation is not to achieve a blank mind, but to gain insight into the nature of mind itself.

Meditation is not about escaping from difficulty but about meeting it with awareness.

We need to learn to let our emotions pass through us like waves, without getting caught in their undertow.

The quieter you become, the more you can hear.